Chapter 35: Something Unknown (9)

The first thought that passed through Jiho’s head was…

‘Futile.’

So futile.

To think that it just ends like this when he finally started to do something.

He raided an S-rank dungeon, received a new skill, and changed public opinion. Just when he’s about to do something, he dies?

It would’ve been better if he had at least died saving someone.

“…”

But isn’t he thinking a little too much if he’s dead?

Upon this sudden realization, Jiho opened his eyes.

“XX XXX!”

As his hearing–which had gone dull for a bit–returned, the monster’s indecipherable scream shot through Jiho’s ears. The monster was screaming as it held its arm that flew off.

Jiho doesn’t understand the current situation.

Only half of the arm that had pierced through Jiho’s chest was left; the arm had a terrible wound, as if it had been hit by an explosion or something. Almost like the person who got attacked wasn’t Jiho but the monster.

‘Was I not attacked?’

But he definitely felt the terrible pain of his heart being pierced.

Confused by the situation that doesn’t make any sense, Jiho looked down at his chest. His shirt has a hole in it. Based on this mark, it wasn’t an illusion but…

Suddenly, a skill window opened up in front of Jiho’s eyes.

Information

Ipeulis1‘s Protection (Lv. 10)RankEXExplanationXXXXX X XXXX XXX XXX XXXX XX XXXX XX. XXXX XXX XXX XXX XXXX X, XXXXX XX XXX XXXX XXXX XX XXXXX.

The skill that Jiho hadn’t been able to see before was blinking. It seems like it was activated just now.

‘Ipeulis’s Protection?’

Did he survive because this skill protected him or something? Jiho wanted to see if there was a more detailed description, but…

Information

XXXXX XX (Lv. 10)RankEXExplanationXXXXX X XXXX XXX XXX XXXX XX XXXX XX. XXXX XXX XXX XXX XXXX X, XXXXX XX XXX XXXX XXXX XX XXXXX.

The window shook as if it was glitching, and soon, even the words he could see before were covered up again.

Even though Jiho was curious, there was no time to think about it. Instead of thinking deeply, Jiho moved. Although the monster isn’t moving because of its pain right now, once it comes to, it’ll attack even more ferociously. 

He can’t take the elevator or the stairs. All of the exits are blocked.

And even if Jiho does escape, there’s bound to be people outside, even if Bangbae Station isn’t very busy on weekday evenings.

It would be nice if Jiho escapes outside and runs into a combat awakened one so that he could use his skill to boost them, but…

What if that doesn’t happen? Then innocent people will be sacrificed.

Upon reaching a decision, Jiho raised his head. And then he was startled.

The ghost that he had just been thinking about–the ghost that he was once able to see–stood near the entrance of the guild.

Why can he see it now, of all times, after being unable to do so for so long?

The ghost stood still and made a gesture telling Jiho to come to it.

‘So a ghost is a ghost.’

Seeing how the ghost was trying to lead him to his death, it seems that it hadn’t been a nice ghost after all.

Even though Jiho knew that was disadvantageous, he still, without hesitation, escaped into the guild like the ghost told him to. For now, the safest place is a place with a barrier. Of course, judging from the monster’s strength, the barrier won’t last very long either…

As soon as he closed and locked the door, the monster ran up to the door. Its eyes were filled with a murderous resolve to kill Jiho.

BANG, BANG.

Its fists tore a hole into the expensive barrier. The ghost that had appeared in front of Jiho had disappeared at some point.

First, Jiho took a picture of the monster that looked almost exactly like a human. This picture of the monster will be automatically backed-up onto the server, even if Jiho dies.

Once they look through CCTV footage for its humanlike form and attire, they will be warned that a monster pretending to be a human is lurking on the streets.

Jiho checked the time. Despite it feeling like a lot of time had passed, it’s barely been three minutes since he reported the monster.

No matter how fast they send help, the probability of Jiho still being alive by then is low.

It’s a relief that he could at least send all of the information about the monster out before then.

As soon as he felt relief about that small thing, the barrier ripped apart. Even though Jiho gave up on the thought of coming out alive, it didn’t mean he was going down without a fight.

If he dies too easily here, the monster might run out and wreak havoc, thus resulting in sacrifices.

Jiho tightened his fist, with the intention of buying as much time as he could before other hunters arrived.

But at that time.

PAJIKKKKK!2

A great wave of mana shook the room with a loud sound. A barrier much stronger than the one that shattered engulfed the inside of the office.

Jiho looked around in a daze.

The entire lobby was covered in a brilliant golden light. Though it was as bright as the sun, it wasn’t impossible to see through it since the light was made from mana.

The thing that created such a strong barrier with this light was the roses.

Those roses: the ones that Joo Yiwon gave, and the ones that had been displayed in the guild’s lobby this whole time.

Reacting to Jiho’s mana, the roses grew. The once ordinary stems grew thick and the roses spread their roots to the ground like a tree. The fist-sized flowers shot up like a sunflower and spread a strong scent.

Upon discovering the barrier, the monster, agitated, backed up from it. The part of the monster that touched the barrier for a second was horribly burnt.

“Wh-what did he leave me with?”

“I gave it to you in case of something like this happening, of course.”

Even though Jiho was alone in the office, a familiar voice could be heard.

Doubting his own ears, Jiho turned his head.

“Shin Jiho.”

In that place stood Joo Yiwon, who is supposed to be in Australia right now. The eyes of the guy who’s usually always smiling glinted with a dangerous golden light.

And next to Joo Yiwon stood S-rank teleporter, Hwang Hye Lim. 

If Yiwon was traveling with her, it probably wasn’t hard to get here from Australia, but how did he know?

While Jiho was thinking, the roses entered Jiho’s eyes. The plants that Joo Yiwon gave; the plants that might be connected to Joo Yiwon.

‘Did he come because he thought I was in danger?’

Although Yiwon came as he pleased… Jiho has never been so pleased to see him before.

Yiwon turned his glowing eyes to the monster and glared. The monster screamed something and tried to run away, but it was instantly cut into pieces.

… Along with part of the building.

Joo Yiwon ripped apart the monster and building with his great mana.

“Hey, how could you just get rid of it like that…”

The monster wasn’t just split into two parts–it was practically shattered. Though it died a violent death, there was no feeling of disgust. After all, not a single part of the monster was left.

A monster that can change into a form that’s similar to that of a human is something that needs to be studied. They should’ve caught it alive or at least saved a sample of it…

“Shin Jiho.”

Jiho flinched at the sharp tone. Yiwon spoke in a cold voice that Jiho had never heard before and glared at him. Specifically at Jiho’s tattered clothes.

“Are you hurt?”

“Yeah, but it’s not big. It just grazed me…”

“A graze doesn’t result in something like this.”

Yiwon cut off Jiho’s excuse with a voice full of anger.

Although Jiho wanted to say, ‘What does it matter to you?’ and ‘It’s really nothing, you’re going overboard,’ he couldn’t. Had it been like any other time, he would’ve immediately snapped back, but without Yiwon, Jiho would’ve actually died or at least be barely alive.

An awkward silence settled between them. It was the first time an atmosphere like this had been created between him and Yiwon.

A third-party was the one to break this awkward silence. Hwang Hye Lim, who came with Yiwon, walked up to the two of them. Hye Lim looked at Yiwon with a done face.

“Yiwon-ssi, shouldn’t we return now? Take Shin Jiho-ssi to a nearby hospital and…”

“I’m not going.”

“What?”

“Ah, I thought so.”

While Shin Jiho was shocked, Hwang Hye Lim was calm, as if she had expected that answer. With a relaxed attitude unbefitting of the situation, Hye Lim asked Jiho.

“Shin Jiho-ssi, have you reported it yet?”

“Yes, earlier, but…”

Hye Lim nodded at Jiho’s answer. She glanced out the window that was slightly hazy because of the barrier and shrugged.

“They sure are taking their time. Then should I take care of the rest?”

“Sure.”

“I’m going to ask for something big in exchange this time.”

“Whatever.”

Joo Yiwon and Hwang Hye Lim whispered between themselves and came to a conclusion. After quickly ending the conversation with Hye Lim, Yiwon lifted Jiho up. Jiho couldn’t react to his embarrassing position. After all, his body didn’t have a bit of strength in it after his adrenaline left.

Once Hye Lim used her special skill to create a portal, Yiwon calmly walked towards it. Jiho finally reacted, then, and began to flail around.

“Wait… Hey, you have to raid a dungeon in Australia!”

“It’s fine, Vice-Guildmaster will do something about it. You come first right now.”

“I-I’m grateful you saved me, but… aren’t I all good now?”

“No.”

“I am.”

Yiwon looked down at Jiho. A fierce gaze, as if he was criticizing him. Even though Yiwon wasn’t using a skill, his eyes were still colored gold and looked quite dangerous.

“Don’t make me laugh. Stop talking, and stay still.”

Yiwon scolded roughly. Though Yiwon’s tone crossed a simple command and was, instead, a clear tone of disrespect, Jiho was more angered by Yiwon’s actions than his attitude.

“Does it look like I’d stay still?! Do you want to have curses thrown at you too?”

A Korean hunter leaves his spot when he was supposed to help raid a dungeon in Australia?

This would cause a problem for any hunter, but for Joo Yiwon, whose every movement is under constant scrutiny, it will create an even bigger stir.

The public currently has a very positive attitude towards Joo Yiwon. But a mistake made by someone who has done good up until that point is remembered many times more than someone who made a mistake multiple times.

Memories of the past year quickly passed through Jiho’s head. It’s enough for Jiho alone to bear that much.

“You do not have to worry about that. I will receive some money from Yiwon-ssi and take care of it.”

Hye Lim cut in cooly. 

Jiho, who had forgotten about her existence, flailed around again, but Yiwon ignored him. The last sight Jiho saw before teleporting with Yiwon was Hye Lim grinning widely as if she was watching something very interesting.

“Oof…”

As soon as they passed through the portal, Jiho’s head rang as if someone was holding his head and shaking it. He felt queasy, but nothing came out, so he was left simply dizzy and head spinning. 

“Did you know? Hwang Hye Lim’s portal is one of the few stable teleportation skills. You’re so weak right now that you can’t even endure that.”

Yiwon said coldly, yet Jiho didn’t even have the energy to answer him. Yiwon let out a long sigh. Despite his tone, he still set Jiho down somewhere very carefully. Jiho could feel something soft envelop his back.

“Why were you there?”

“What do you mean why… It’s my guild…”

“I saw the traces of your movements. You should’ve escaped through the window or up to the roof–why did you run back into the guild? Even after getting pierced through here.”

Yiwon’s gaze was fixed on Jiho’s chest. Jiho quickly defended himself.

“I didn’t get pierced, it just grazed…”

“A simple graze doesn’t result in blood spilling like this. And plus…”

“…”

“No, never mind. Explain everything, and don’t try to make something up.”

While demanding an explanation, Yiwon’s gaze was sharp. It seems like a clumsy excuse isn’t going to cut it. It also feels like Yiwon knows a lot more than Jiho thought. 

Jiho couldn’t say the truth that he was putting his life on the line in order to buy some time. Because Yiwon’s voice was shaking slightly.

And there’s also the issue that Yiwon might go off and tell on him to his parents. Although it’s a childish worry for an adult, it can’t be helped.

Jiho laughed awkwardly. A clumsy excuse won’t do. Jiho’s gears turned quickly, trying to figure out how much he has to reveal in order to make it sound believable.

“Actually, I have a counter-skill. It reflects all attacks that come towards me and heals me. I acted out a bit because of that skill. Didn’t you see that monster’s arm detached from its body?”

Yiwon frowned doubtfully.

“You didn’t see?”

“I did.”

“I did that.”

“You gained that skill recently?”

“Eung.”

“You have a skill that good?”

“No, well, the conditions are a bit strict and the cool-time is long, so it can only be used in emergencies, but… anyways, it’s something like that.”

He mixed in a bit of lies, but Jiho still answered confidently. 

In actuality, he doesn’t know the skill’s conditions or cool-time, but if you were just looking at the results, he wasn’t wrong. Since instead of Jiho’s heart flying off, it was the monster’s arm.

Even if the skill doesn’t work next time, he can just say that he didn’t meet the conditions this time or that the cool-time period hasn’t passed yet.

“This place was penetrated, but… that skill healed me at once. Look, there’s no wound.”

Yiwon glared fiercely at Jiho. Jiho did feel guilty, but what could he do? He doesn’t really understand what happened then either.

“So instead of escaping, you ran back inside?”

“I felt like I could take a bit. There was a barrier, and I already reported it…”

“So you think you did good.”

“…”

Why is he being scolded?

But he didn’t do anything good, so he couldn’t say anything. When Jiho was about to apologize…

“OW!”

Yiwon’s hand pressed down on Jiho’s left chest that had just been attacked.

Although there’s no wound, it seems that the impact of the blow hasn’t completely disappeared yet. Jiho’s vision went white from the pain. The pain was so bad that Jiho forgot about his head hurting and grabbed Yiwon’s sleeve.

“It, it hurts…”

“That’s why you should only be penetrated by me, not by someone else.”